Looking Back on 2021, Forward to 2022
By Damien Kurek, Battle River - Crowfoot MP
We faced many challenges in 2021: the continuation of COVID-19, economic uncertainty, extreme weather that included local droughts, growing divisions amongst Canadians, and an election that few wanted. With all that said, I am confident in 2022 we can overcome many of the challenges we face.
Conservatives have been working diligently on making sure the concerns of Canadians are heard. First and foremost is ensuring the safety of Canadians and the measures used to stop the spread of COVID-19 are effective as well as respectful of the rights of Canadians. Last year, we saw a growing polarization of COVID-19 related issues that pitted Canadians against each other. The Liberals took aim at anyone with beliefs differing from their own and who did not trust their flawed ideals, using issues like vaccines to score points and divide Canadians.
The Liberals’ actions on borders, their quarantine hotels, and their vaccine passports clearly showed that they do not care about using data and fact-based approaches to combatting COVID. Most of the time, they just want to seem like they are doing something after their many failed attempts at dealing with COVID-19 and the devastation these attempts have had on Canada.
The hard work of Canadians will be the ones who ultimately guide us through this crisis. Canadian businesses, innovators, and workers have what it takes to build our economy back up again. Canada’s agriculture, manufacturing, oil and gas, and health care industries have not only paved the path for Canada’s future but the future of many other nations around the world. We need a Government that recognizes our gifts and improves the areas where we can be better, and the Conservatives will be the ones that fight for that to be the case in Canada.
While the election result was not what we had wanted, it showed the lengths that Trudeau and his cronies will go to get their way. In the new year, Canada’s Conservatives will continue to take the Liberals to task for their attack on our energy sector, pursuing an ideological agenda that only benefits a few, their rampant corruption, and the many other failings of their Government.
The COVID-19 pandemic, our frightening fiscal situation, and the poor decisions of the Liberal Government are all pressing issues and the Official Opposition will continue to fight for Canadians. In my position as Deputy Shadow Minister for Rural Economic Development and Broadband Strategy, and on Standing Committee for Access to information, Privacy and Ethics, I will continue to pursue accountability in Government and ensure that the voices of rural Albertans are heard loud and clear. In 2019 I made it clear I would fight for good governance and rural Canada, and every day I still fight for those two things.
We are facing headwinds, but we can find the path to a better tomorrow. I am very proud of Battle River-Crowfoot and am humbled to be your Member of Parliament. My family and I would like to wish you a happy and fruitful New Year! May God bless you, and may God bless Canada.